8 MOUTH BREATHER (2/2)
”Touch what?” Her voice was as calm as before.
”Your hands,” Lirzod said, with excitement written all over his face. ”I've always wanted to touch a model's arm. They look so fragile and delightful.”
”Are you praising or criticizing me?”
Lirzod startled. ”Why would I criticize? The one who raised me was a model. But she's not as lean anymore as you are now.”
”... I'm not a model anymore either.”
”You mean, you quit?”
”I did.”
”Why?” Lirzod helplessly asked. ”Don't you like being a model? Don't men swoon all over you just from knowing your profession?”
A corner of her lips curled up just a little, and she looked ahead at the distant end of that corridor. ”Maybe, that's why I quit the job.”
”What? I don't get it.”
”The scar on your face looks real.”
”Because it is. Can you tell me why you quit?”
”Can you tell me why you didn't get that scar healed?”
Lirzod startled. ”That's... Well, I have my reasons.”
(What the hell are they talking about?) 777 scratched his head. (He doesn't look happy. Is she ordering him to be his slave? I knew it. Something like this is bound to happen.)
”I'm the same. In all my days of the modeling career, I never once smiled from the bottom of my heart. I never once truly liked how I looked. I never once attended a party because I wanted to. I don't recommend a modeling career for any young men or women, no matter how beautiful the person is. It's not worth it to be judged only on how you look. We are beautiful just the way God made us. It is too easy to feel the need to compare yourself to other people. As long as we don't get caught up in the comparison trap, we'll be fine, and won't end up like flies that get trapped in a spider web.”
”Is modeling career that frustrating?” Lirzod couldn't believe her words. He held a very high opinion of models, right from his childhood. But from hearing the words, it confused him. How can women who aren't happy on the inside, still manage to appear so alluring on the outside? He just couldn't get his mind around it.
”Every rose has its thorn,” Clarenda poked her index finger on Lirzod's forearm. Her sharp nail dug a little into this skin and made a red blood droplet surface out. ”Even the brightest being at night — the moon, has dark spots on him. None of us are perfect. I've never met a model who ever thought they are perfect... Including myself. A model never feels perfect enough about their appearance.” She turned to the side, which made her snake earrings swing like a pendulum for a couple seconds. ”It's easy to break their self-esteem. Lucky for you, the scar on your face keeps you strong.” She started walking.
”W-Wait.”
”Hmm?”
Lirzod paused and said nothing.
”What is it?”
”I... I have been following you for six months, just to tell you one thing,” Lirzod couldn't look straight into her eyes. ”I think... I'm in love with you.”
Clarenda stayed silent. 777 just happened to the last sentence that came out of Lirzod's mouth, and it made him freeze.
”Will you give me a chance?” Lirzod hesitantly said.
Clarenda began to walk without saying anything. It left Lirzod with a puzzled expression that contained an expectation hidden underneath. ”It's only been three months since I boarded this ship.”
Her last few words turned Lirzod's face into a dismal dog that had just missed out fetching its favorite bone.
As he stood still, her image gradually made the distance until it turned invisible in time.
”The mystique, the money, and the magic of a model's life in the West is truly a celebrated thing,” 777 mumbled to himself. ”Dare I say, better than most of the royalty of the East.” He walked up to Lirzod, who's still in a daze. ”She's long gone. I must say, you are lucky.”
”Yeah, I know. Whom should I pick now? Clarenda or Stussy? I'm so confused. Both have the air of adults, but Stussy has a childlike face similar to Primera. Clarenda, on the other hand, looks scary like my mom, but she doesn't talk like her. Why does God always put me in so much trouble? This is tantalizing me!”
”I'd say, forget about them both,” 777 was no longer surprised by Lirzod's words. ”That Clarenda is a woman from the upper decks. We, the members of the lower decks don't have the right to look them straight in the eyes.”
”No right? What would happen if I look and that person didn't like it?”
”If you do it without their permission, then they are free to punish you however they please.”
”That's...” Lirzod paused a moment.
”I know,” 777 rested his palm on top of Lirzod's shoulder. ”It's hard to digest after knowing you've barely escaped death.”
”She... She didn't do anything to me,” A smile broke out of Lirzod's face and his eyes showed great expectations. ”Maybe, she likes me!”
A sudden chill crawled down 777's spine, which almost made him faint and stumble. ”You think you're a king or what? Why would she like you? Besides, how can you like two girls at the same time? And girls of such reputation, nonetheless. Each one is leagues above you.”
”What's wrong with that? I just like them, that's all.”
”Oh? Then can you give one valid reason as to why you like them? Don't give me stupid answers saying, 'they are beautiful, that's why I like them'.”
Lirzod smiled.
”What's that cheeky smile for?”
”Can you tell me why you like your mother?”
”Hmm? I'm the one who asked you a question first!”
”Just answer me.”
”... Well, because she's my mother.”
”You don't have any specific reasons?”
”No. I like her for who she is.”
”See... It's the same for me. I like girls for who they are. I don't look for reasons to love them. When my heart reacts to the guise of a girl, I ask it no further questions. Knowing about the girl comes later.”
777 tried his best to control his anger. ”Why are you comparing the love for mother to the love for a stranger?”
”Love is love, Triple Seven,” Lirzod patted him twice.
”That's horse-shit.”
Meanwhile, on a certain deck.
An oval-shaped face resting atop a seven-feet tall torso exposed itself as the curtain was pulled aside, and a weighty man stepped out of the bathtub. His head was entirely shaved, and he didn't have a single strand of hair on his face. Every vein under his skin was as evident as day. Water droplets slid on his muscles and got stuck in the valleys of his burliness. Wearing nothing but a towel which had designs of different types of eggs that had varied expressions he raised his left arm a little and Pikolai slid an orange file in between the index finger and thumb of that man.
On the cover of the file, the words 'Black Batch', was painted in a shadowy ink, with two flowers on either side of it.
The man opened the file and there was but a single black page inside which had some information written on it.
Black Batch - Trial Report.
Subject(s): Lirzod Basha(14), Sariyu Basuvu(17), Burton Vesta(24).
Hometown: Helenia.
Clan: Faceless (beta-ranked clan).
Specifics: The perpetrator was Lirzod. He used decorated paper blasts and took care of the four victims. He's known to be a mouth breather.
Threat Level: First Petal.
Seeker: River Wind (Ghost in Lily).
Total Report will be delivered within the next twenty-four hours.
”A member of the beta-ranked clan...” The man gave the file back to Pikolai. ”These low ranking clans and guilds are greedier for power than we can imagine. We can never be sure if we are against a house cat or a holt cat...” He cast a sideways glance at Pikolai. ”Who's this River Wind?”
”This is my first time hearing his name too, Master. But I heard that he was never wrong with his research, not once in all of his twenty-eight subjects to date. That's why he's become a 'Ghost in Lily', in a matter of a few months.”
”Hmm... This private intelligence service is unlike any other we've made use of. We know nothing about their roots. Be careful when dealing with them from here on.”
”Sure, Master,” The file in Pikolai's hand vanished into thin air. ”What did you decide on that boy of the Faceless clan?”
”Since he's the only one from his clan, that messed with us, I can't yet come to a decision yet.”
”Shall we wait until we receive the Total Report?”
”... No. Four of our members are hurt. We can't stay silent for an entire day.”
”Then what do you suggest, Master?”
”Benign Boil.”
Pikolai bowed his head just a little. ”As per your wishes, the bad egg will be duly dealt with.” He then put forward an egg soup made from wispy whisked eggs boiled in chicken broth. It was swallowed in haste by that man, while still standing in a towel.
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[1] Buzzy Good: A good that has been enhanced by the electrical entities. In general, these would include food or kitchenware, or gadgets, or any other home products. But only the licensed personnel were allowed to use them in combat.